Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 236: Gesture of God

[You’re not Zhong Chengshuo.]

A surge of thoughts, like crashing waves, gushed out from the colossal creature. Its gigantic eyeballs rolled up, and the deep black pupils were like black holes on the white monster.

[You’re Zhong Chengshuo’s lover. You are Yin Ren. You are the Fear cub—no, not the Fear cub—you were originally another offspring, just like me… So that’s how it is, so that’s how it is.]

The reaction of Love was swift, but Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo were even quicker.

Red veils fluttered, and red lights ignited. The brilliant, fiery red engulfed the white monster in an instant. Love was momentarily restrained by the authority of “Fear”. At that moment, Yin Ren charged straight at the abnormal giant eye. Under the red veil, his wings fused into massive black wings, transforming into a scythe-like structure—they drew a series of explosive sounds in the air, flying towards the center of the giant eye.

The red light of Fear greatly weakened the mobility of Love. It shifted its massive body, barely evading a bit. The black scythe struck the heart, slicing off a large chunk of flesh. The nearby scythes instantly returned to the form of wing clusters, tearing and devouring the pale flesh.

It was delicious but hard to eat.

Yin Ren tasted a similar repulsive sensation to that of Zhong Chengshuo. It stimulated his taste buds like an overdose of chili peppers. He struggled to devour it, and in one fell swoop, hundreds of scythes were swung out.

The red veil danced, and white feathers splattered. Yin Ren disregarded everything, slashing at Love’s wings and body. The wing clusters also ignored the pain, frantically devouring the maimed body of Love.

“Fear” rendered the movements of Love incredibly sluggish. Its once eerie and sacred appearance was nearly hacked into a pile of snow-white flesh. It tried its best to dodge, ultimately managing to preserve only its heart and eyes.

Quick; he had to be quick—even faster.

Opportunities were rare, and the nights were filled with dreams. Yin Ren didn’t want to give it any chance to counterattack. He unleashed his fastest attack speed, forcibly devouring one-third of Love’s massive body.

But as he relentlessly attacked, the surrounding fog grew thicker.

Finally, Yin Ren swung his scythe once again, but Love didn’t dodge.

It slightly adjusted its posture, and the giant eye turned toward Yin Ren once more. The fog surged, and the surroundings abruptly changed, transforming into an extremely spacious void. The maimed body of Love emitted a sticky sound as it suddenly burst into countless flesh masses, shooting in all directions.

Yin Ren’s movement faltered.

Love’s white space was coming. The ability that only he and Zhong Chengshuo hadn’t mastered—Yin Ren didn’t know how to use it yet, and as for Zhong Chengshuo, he probably couldn’t use it either, at least not at first.

In the next second, the two were engulfed by countless illusions.

Countless scenes piled up before Yin Ren—The grayish-white Yin Village appeared faintly in the mist, and the villagers wore smiles, energetically preparing for the ritual to welcome the gods. Boys and girls with big doll masks laughed and played, running through the village. The evil creatures once led by the Great Celestial Master floated peacefully in the sky while the members of Huajisi strolled outside the village.

The various scenes merged and overlapped, contradictory yet harmonious, as if fragmented memories were cut and reassembled into a palace.

Yin Ren remained suspended in mid-air.

Above the village and army of evil creatures was an inverted version of the Shian Campus. The cafeteria staff wandered around with pots and bowls, and familiar faces from Shian basked in the sun by the pool.

Surrounding Yin Ren were the peaceful estate of Ping’an and the residence of the Zhong family.

Room after room lost its color, transforming into scattered spaces. Hu Tao secretly watched on the tablet in the living room; the elderly couple chatted and laughed in the living room; Zhong Chengshuo busied himself in the kitchen, shifting to diligently brushing his teeth in the bathroom, then quietly reading at the desk.

Then Zhong Chengshuo was in the bedroom. He leaned over and gave him a good morning kiss. Although there were no colors, Yin Ren could even discern the warmth of the other’s breath and the faint sunlight on his eyelashes.

Countless scenes, countless acquaintances.

They moved around Yin Ren with their most vivid appearances, each with a beating white heart embedded in their chests. Those hearts had beautiful pairs of eyes wide open, looking at him from all directions.

“Master.”

“Great Celestial Master.”

“Xiao Yin.”

“Yin Ren.”

They called out to him with cheerful voices.

Suddenly, Yin Ren felt a heaviness.

At some point, hundreds of white masses had grown on his wing clusters. The tips of the small wings were stained with white spots, and the meat chunks shaped like hearts were slowly growing on him. Once the eyes opened, countless delicate arms sprouted around the white hearts, reaching out to the next target.

Under the red veil, they resembled the spots on poisonous mushrooms, rapidly increasing and spreading, bringing waves of hot and comforting affection.

Amidst the dance of the red veil, a cold snort sounded from the darkness beneath it.

Countless black spells condensed around Yin Ren, arrow-like, piercing through each familiar figure, directly hitting the eyeballs on their hearts. Yin Ren didn’t even spare those that had grown on his own body.

Blood flowed profusely. The people he had loved stared with wide eyes; their faces twisted with expressions of betrayal as their lifeless bodies crashed onto the ground.

But Yin Ren only felt anger.

If Love had used these earlier, maybe they would have been effective against him. But now, Love still wanted to use such childish tactics against him.

Countless arms protruded from under the wing clusters, digging into the corpses to extract their hearts—

The cherished villagers of Yin Village turned into white bones, and the lineup of evil creatures had long since dissipated. The members of Shian were striving in the mortal world, while the person he deeply loved was clenched in his hands. As for Hu Tao… she was a victim of Love.

Yin Ren repeatedly watched the horrifying scene of Zhong Chengshuo’s death. Even though it pained him emotionally, Yin Ren knew what he had to do.

The wing clusters moved swiftly, and the sound of tearing and squelching echoed as Yin Ren captured those white hearts. Under the red light from Zhong Chengshuo, they emitted a layer of red, as if soaked in blood.

But when those wing clusters bit down, they found nothing but emptiness.

The white hearts turned into mist once again and returned to the bodies. They wobbled to their feet, moaning and groaning in pain for a moment before tenderly calling out.

The vertical eyes on those hearts curved slightly, as if smiling.

The surrounding scenes were boundless and unchanging. Only Yin Ren grew another layer of white hearts on his body, accompanied by rapidly whitening wing clusters. He had to endure the pain and remove them—one by one, the milk-white hearts with black wing clusters were severed by Yin Ren, oozing crimson blood. The cut chunks of flesh merged into the ground, swiftly devoured by Love.

Yin Ren curled up cautiously. Countless black-red runes floated around him as he continuously severed the “infection” on his own body, desperately thinking of a strategy.

[Even if you’re not deceived by illusions, when you see them, you will be reminded of them. Your affection for them cannot be eradicated.]

The gentle voice of Love resonated in his heart, sounding somewhat like Zhong Chengshuo.

[Even the most rational person cannot deceive their own heart… After all, humans are humans, and there are limits…]

Unlike the violent attacks of the other Great Primordial Elementals, Love infiltrated and assimilated without exception, making it particularly terrifying. It aimed to corrode the enemy completely in an eternal cycle.

This was the result of the fear induced by Zhong Chengshuo. As a soon-to-be-born powerful god, “Love” shouldn’t be underestimated.

To deal with this deadly space, he had to possess a similar level of power. However, with the infections on his body being cut off and regrowing, the intense pain made Yin Ren unable to focus his energy. Instinctively, Yin Ren crossed his arms and firmly protected Zhong Chengshuo in his chest.

Suddenly, Yin Ren felt a peculiar sensation in the palm of his hand.

Warm, slippery, with a slight pulsation.

…Could it be?

A chill ran through Yin Ren’s heart. He slightly opened his hand and discovered a white heart at the back of Zhong Chengshuo’s neck.

It was like a strange bud, twitching rhythmically. The lantern in Zhong Chengshuo’s hand was clearly dim and unstable. Yin Ren raised his eyes and noticed many white spots in Zhong Chengshuo’s originally pitch-black eyes.

“Does it hurt?” Zhong Chengshuo tilted his head back, softly asking. “It must be very painful…”

Yin Ren had never seen such a delicate expression on Zhong Chengshuo’s face—when it came to emotions, Zhong Chengshuo always carried a simple and gentle clumsiness like that of raw wood. But now, he seemed intoxicated, and there was a certain abnormal vagueness in his features.

“I don’t like seeing you in pain,” Zhong Chengshuo murmured, his brows tightly furrowed.

This was bad.

Yin Ren knew he had intense emotions, and he had fallen into numerous emotional pitfalls in the past. From the “Innocent Thoughts” to Qi Xin, he had deliberately trained himself to resist emotional manipulation.

But Zhong Chengshuo hadn’t.

Zhong Chengshuo, by nature, was always rational and stable, and he was confident in this aspect. Moreover, nothing had ever been able to affect him. Zhong Chengshuo was like a blank sheet of paper. Neither cursed spirit weapons nor evil creatures, nor even the Great Primordial Elementals, could achieve that.

…But beings of the same level as a “god” might be able to.

“Yin Ren.” Zhong Chengshuo leaned against one of Yin Ren’s fingers, holding it tightly. The lantern dangerously tilted, causing the flame to flicker even more. “Yin Ren, it hurts a lot, doesn’t it? Eat me…”

Yin Ren: “…”

The “Innocent Thoughts” version of Zhong Chengshuo unexpectedly didn’t exhibit any aggressiveness. Love had devoured his rationality, and Zhong Chengshuo had developed an obsession with the idea of “letting his lover eat him to heal”. Tirelessly, he called out to Yin Ren.

“Eat me, eat me now.” He held onto Yin Ren’s finger tightly, repeating persistently.

Yin Ren: “I won’t eat.”

“You should eat. My taste won’t be any less than Satisfaction.” Zhong Chengshuo was erratically offering himself.

“I won’t eat, even if I die.” Yin Ren emphasized. “Listen carefully, Zhong Chengshuo. I won’t eat, even if I die. I’m still waiting to go home with you.”

Zhong Chengshuo paused for a second, revealing a dazed expression of being struck heavily. “But you’re in pain.”

“I can’t help you, whether it’s with this lantern or the definition of our species. I can only assist, watching you take the lead. I don’t like seeing you hurt. I should be your shield…” Zhong Chengshuo’s eyes became less pitch-black, and some chunks of flesh flipped out from his eye sockets, showing signs of swelling and growth.

“Yin Ren, I want to do something for you, anything… Why won’t you eat me?”

Yin Ren somewhat understood Zhong Chengshuo’s horror when he had consumed the “Innocent Thoughts” in the past. Lowering his head, he looked down at his bewildered lover in his palm. He had no doubt that if he could find his mouth, Zhong Chengshuo would definitely try to climb inside.

Swish, swish. Yin Ren once again severed the infected parts on his body caused by Love. Amidst the intense pain, he suddenly had a somewhat bad idea.

“You just said you’re willing to do anything for me, right?” Yin Ren raised his hands high, his thoughts gentle.

Zhong Chengshuo nodded vigorously.

“In that case…” The beautiful monster leaned down, and his thoughts were like the whispers of a demon. “Without harming yourself, solve this problem of easing my pain—can you do it?”

Zhong Chengshuo froze, and even the white in his eyes stopped spreading.

He stood motionless in place, completely stiff. Yin Ren couldn’t help but think of the black rabbit that was like a stone statue when they had first met.

Alright, he’s restrained now. Satisfied, Yin Ren raised his head and continued to contemplate strategies amidst the intense pain.

A few minutes later, he felt an itch in his palm.

“Ah… Ah…”

Zhong Chengshuo looked up, revealing a suddenly enlightened smile.

“Yes, that’s right. In addition to healing, I can also… I can prevent new wounds from forming. But I can’t do it now, I can’t. I shouldn’t be unable to do it.”

His tone carried a mixture of confusion and obsession.

“In theory, ‘I’ should be able to do it.”

Just as Yin Ren was about to say something, a sense of oppression suddenly burst from his palm.

Zhong Chengshuo’s eyes were no longer speckled with white. The pitch-black color returned, spreading incessantly. The snow-white heart behind his head exploded, giving birth to numerous black droplets.

Yin Ren’s vision briefly went dark.

When his perception returned, Zhong Chengshuo’s eyes no longer had any whites. There was only darkness mixed with countless patterns, where the essence of Fear rapidly surged. Above Zhong Chengshuo’s head, a pitch-black perfect circle slowly took shape, floating about a fist’s height above his skull.

Without thickness, it was like a layer of pitch-black shadow floating in the air.

The erosion of Love had weakened, but Zhong Chengshuo was clearly still in a state of confusion. He muttered words that Yin Ren couldn’t understand, tightly gripping onto the bone lantern.

With the whisper completed, he raised the lantern a little higher.

The blood-red light that had originally filled the sky, like all-natural radiance, now came to life and began converging towards the center of the lantern. The soft and faint light gathered together, shining brilliantly like the setting sun.

In the next instant, the golden-red light sphere split into thousands of golden-red light rabbits. They had strange and bizarre forms as they hopped towards the pale contamination on Yin Ren’s body. In less than half a minute, the rabbits took their places one by one, gently leaning against the contaminated cluster of wings. The soft red light was like pearls, illuminating the dark wings.

The expansion of the white spots came to an abrupt halt. The hearts gradually withered and dried up, the arms became brittle and snapped, and eventually, they were scattered into ashes by the cluster of wings.

Fear, the most primal and powerful emotion, theoretically had the ability to overpower everything.

Including “Love”.

Zhong Chengshuo raised the lantern higher and higher, and more red light gushed out from it, enveloping the two of them. Not long ago, the red light was simply sprinkled indiscriminately. Now, it flowed out of the lantern obediently, bowing down at Zhong Chengshuo’s feet.

Yin Ren’s pain, indeed, stopped.

The author has something to say:

Love-stricken Xiao Yin went crazy.

Xiao Zhong: (dodging) (resisting)

Love-stricken Xiao Zhong went crazy.

Xiao Yin: “You’re willing to do anything for me? Then solve this problem first.”

…Maybe this is the difference in experience (no offense).

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 235: Placing A Bet

Haigu, The New Pedestrian Street, Donghe District.

Fu Xingchuan stood in mid-air, facing his former junior—Xiang Jiang, who was once seen as the “successor of the new generation”.

Xiang Jiang tightened his grip on his younger brother’s hand, and his facial expression twitched. “Fu…”

Fu Xingchuan clearly had no intention of exchanging pleasantries with him. With a raised hand, dozens of fire dragons roared and blasted towards Xiang Jiang like projectiles. Xiang Jiang swallowed the words he was about to say, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

Xiang Hai also waved his hand, and a torrent of corpses surged out from a sewer outlet. They gathered in front of them, forming a shield. When the raging fire met the rotting corpses, the smell of burnt flesh instantly filled the air.

“The so-called ghost generals are nothing more than corpse servants who can control ghosts. You don’t have the advantage,” Xiang Jiang said softly.

Beside him, Xiang Hai clenched his fist, causing the foul-smelling corpses to writhe continuously. Facing the bodies of his former villagers, Xiang Hai had an eerie innocence on his face, as if the pile of corpses before him was some kind of toy.

Having had enough fun, he opened his fingers again, pointing towards Fu Xingchuan.

“Kill,” Xiang Hai ordered softly.

Xiang Jiang formed hand seals with both hands, and the surrounding evil qi surged. Evil creatures within a radius of hundreds of miles stirred in response, all converging towards their direction. The nearby fierce ghosts boiled with excitement, and for a moment, evil qi surged like a torrential downpour, resembling naturally tilted dark clouds.

The myriad of evil creatures collided with Fu Xingchuan’s fire web, screaming in agony as they turned into fireballs. The frenzied fierce ghosts were suppressed by various members of the team on the ground, and only about half of them stood before Xiang Jiang. Xiang Jiang’s expression remained unchanged as the fierce ghosts entangled themselves around the corpses commanded by Xiang Hai, forming a layer of foul-smelling water film on their surfaces.

They screamed and laughed, with deformed shadows embracing deformed corpses. For a moment, it seemed as if a flower of human corpses exclusive to nightmares blossomed before Fu Xingchuan.

It extended its dark red petals straight towards Fu Xingchuan, aiming to devour its target.

Fu Xingchuan’s movements never ceased.

“The red-clothed old man’s corpse at eleven o’clock.” Professor Li’s instructions came through his earpiece. “It allows me to see most clearly, and the power there is the strongest.”

Fu Xingchuan remained calm while his ten fingers firmly held the Eight Trigrams symbol. Eight ghostly shadows surged towards the direction indicated by Li Nian. The crimson ghost burst, and the mixture of ghost and corpse was firmly struck. Decaying flesh fell down with a crackling sound, turning into a shower of corpses filled with evil qi.

The three individuals in the sewer weren’t spared and were drenched by it.

“This… is human flesh?”

Sun Qi’an grabbed a piece of flesh from above her head. The piece of skin still had some hair on it, emitting a strong stench.

“No, I can’t stay here. They need a doctor outside.”

Huang Jin couldn’t be bothered to waste words. With a swift chop of his hand, he knocked Sun Qi’an unconscious on the spot.

Currently, they were underground, affected by the evil qi to a lesser extent. If it weren’t for wanting to stay informed about the situation outside, Huang Jin would have sent Yellow Millet to block the manhole.

“So, we’re just going to wait?” Ge Tingting held the unconscious Dr. Sun, and her face was filled with worry.

Within the narrow hole, the sky occasionally turned red from the clashes of spells. Explosions mixed with the wailing of fierce ghosts created a sound that weighed heavily on the chest.

The dense evil qi leaked only slightly into the underground, causing Ge Tingting and Huang Jin’s faces to turn pale. Whenever they opened their mouths, thick white mist would be expelled. The temperature nearby continued to drop, and if this continued, they might freeze to death.

But leaving might be even more dangerous—all the evil creatures near Haigu were drawn to this location, and who knew what might come up from the sewer. Now, with Sun Qi’an in tow, it was inconvenient for them to move.

Ge Tingting didn’t like waiting in place, but she couldn’t think of a better solution at the moment.

Huang Jin forced a smile. “Let’s wait. We’re not at a level where we can intervene in that kind of battle. Surviving is already a victory.”

If the Emergency Management Department couldn’t stop the fierce ghost twins, Huang Jin could start considering the design of an urn.

“But we still need to make some preparations.” Ge Tingting scratched her head frantically. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

“All the support that can be mobilized has arrived. Yin Ren and the others are on the Other Side. In this unfortunate situation, we can’t abandon the school hospital and the others,” Huang Jin said, sitting cross-legged on Yellow Millet, playing with his own spirit weapon carving knife.

Time passed minute by minute, and the circular sky at the hole’s opening seemed to go mad. The clouds churned frantically, and beams of sunlight intermittently emerged and disappeared from the broken clouds. Strong winds blew in all directions, and countless random objects rolled across the ground—from milk tea cups and snack bags to intact souvenirs and fruits. Huang Jin’s head spun from being hit, while Ge Tingting leaned forward to protect the unconscious Sun Qi’an in her arms.

Just then, something else fell from the sky.

A charred human skull tumbled down Yellow Millet and plopped into the sewage. Huang Jin finally couldn’t help but move his body, cautiously climbing a few steps up the ladder and peering outside.

As soon as he stuck his head out, his scalp was almost shaved off by the cold wind.

The situation outside couldn’t be clearly judged for the time being. The members of the Emergency Management Department were desperately trying to contain the disaster area, preventing the surging evil qi from leaking outside.

Fu Xingchuan still guarded the sky. His upper body was covered in blood, his braid had come loose, and his shoulder-length hair danced wildly on his shoulders. Originally, eight of the strongest fierce ghosts were supposed to be guarding him, but now there were only six left. However, Fu Xingchuan’s condition wasn’t too bad—countless skeletons gathered to form a giant roc, and the skeletal bird floated in the sky, providing him with a foothold.

The situation for Xiang Jiang and Xiang Hai opposite him was even more precarious. The forms of the two fierce ghosts became blurry, with one having charcoal-black fragments on his shoulder and the other’s left leg rotten up to the knee, while evil qi surged madly.

Most of the corpse clusters in front of them had dissipated, leaving only two giant hands hanging lifelessly beside them. Behind the twins, there were still countless ghostly shadows, as if a mass of black smoke had gathered.

And above their heads, the enormous vortex of dark clouds continued to expand.

“The #1 Ghost General—worthy of the title,” Xiang Jiang commented without emotion. “Truly, cough, no mercy.”

Fu Xingchuan moved his lips, but in the end, he didn’t reply. By his side, the fiery red flames began to gather once again.

“So difficult to kill,” Xiang Hai complained. “Brother, this is so difficult to kill. When can we leave this place?”

“It’s okay, we’re almost ready,” Xiang Jiang said, placing his hand on his younger brother’s shoulder.

Huang Jin initially intended to retreat, but this statement made him stay at the scene. Almost ready? What do you mean, almost ready? Sunken Society couldn’t enter now, and these two brothers could only engage in a battle of attrition here. They may be difficult to deal with, but the situation was still under Shian’s control.

What exactly…

Huang Jin’s mind hadn’t turned the corner when he saw something shoot out from the swirling dark clouds. It was as fast as a bullet, and Huang Jin only had time to catch a glimpse of a white silhouette.

With a soft sound, it pierced through Fu Xingchuan’s chest.

Bright red blood splattered in an instant, staining the attacking object. It was a white arm, slender like that of a child but with a tangible presence.

Fu Xingchuan’s fighting instinct was terrifying. The moment he sensed the presence, he tried his best to dodge and avoid a critical hit. Then he tightly closed his eyes and roared at the people on the ground, “Don’t look!”

His voice carried a technique, revealing a fierce and intense aura.

Fu Xingchuan was severely injured. How would the situation develop? What would happen to Haigu? Would the people he cared about be safe? What should he do?

As he saw Fu Xingchuan’s red robe stained with blood in the blink of an eye, countless questions almost overwhelmed Huang Jin’s mind. Without Yin Ren, without Zhong Chengshuo… Now, he had no way out.

He had to find a solution. Haigu couldn’t descend into chaos—at least not now!

Ah, that’s right.

He couldn’t look at the true form of Love. Huang Jin numbly thought. But he had already seen it, so why was he fine?

Could it be…

Huang Jin suddenly wore an extremely ugly smile, and he turned his gaze towards the twins in the sky, the smile on his lips growing wider. Great, it was Xiang Jiang and Xiang Hai who triggered this event. How wonderful.

‘It’s really strange,’ Huang Jin thought. Even in such an absurd situation, he had considered everything, yet he forgot to consider escape and the outcome. Perhaps he had been irritated by those noisy colleagues for too long, and he had become a little foolish as a result.

This time, he would take the initiative.

Huang Jin raised his carving knife and forcefully stabbed it into his own palm.

In an instant, fresh blood smeared the Tranquility Talisman. The Tranquility Talisman was countered by the newly applied blood, instantly changing its properties.

“Go—!!!”

Huang Jin raised his hand, and a freshly created Emotional Amplification Talisman shot towards Xiang Jiang and Xiang Hai. Before the talisman could touch the two of them, it instantly exploded into fragments. Xiang Jiang and Xiang Hai couldn’t resist in time and ended up being slightly affected.

“What kind of Divine Descent is that!” Huang Jin directly carved a series of talismans on his own arm, splattering blood everywhere. “Let me show you what a ‘Divine Descent’ truly is!”

When he saw Love’s arm, he didn’t have any special reaction. It was likely because he had been possessed by a Primordial Elemental in a proper manner, granting him some protection.

After all, when the Great Primordial Elemental possessed him, it had to use his eyes to see.

So, he only needed those two ghosts to be influenced slightly. Huang Jin knew their obsessions, understood their hatred, and also grasped the original emotion that caused all of this:

Sorrow.

Within a small range, a large amount of profound and visible grief gathered.

“Qi Xin!”

Just as Love was about to deliver a fatal blow to Fu Xingchuan after pulling out his arm, Huang Jin shouted loudly, stretching out his arm covered in spells of the Other Side.

“Look at me—!!!” Blood surged out from the wound, splattering in the wind. Huang Jin roared with all his might, his originally gloomy face looking solemn and fierce.

He didn’t know if Qi Xin would come. If the ghosts were affected by the Emotional Amplification Talisman, their power would only become stronger. If this move failed, he would definitely meet his end here…

But this was his last glimmer of hope.

……

Everything seemed to slow down as Love’s fingertips left Fu Xingchuan’s chest, gathering power, and then stabbed forward again. And at the moment when the blood-stained fingertips touched the blood-stained fabric, its wrist was tightly grasped by a hand.

That hand was still adorned with vibrant bloodstains; its five fingers were steady, making a cracking sound as it squeezed the arm.

Huang Jin lifted his head once again, with two traces of red appearing at the corners of his eyes. He swung Love’s arm away, and dense Evil Force suddenly exploded, forcefully pushing back the arm for more than ten steps.

“What a troublesome human.” Qi Xin clicked her tongue, slapping Fu Xingchuan’s chest with her palm, and the flesh and skin quickly closed under it. “Not even afraid that I wouldn’t come…”

Fu Xingchuan swallowed a mouthful of blood. “You’re… Sorrow…”

Qi Xin smirked without smiling. “Thank you both. Now that I have a falling-out with this guy, I can only bet on those two to win.”

After speaking, the Huang Jin version of Qi Xin turned around and protected Fu Xingchuan. “Forget it. When the chips are in your hands, you’ll have to place your bet sooner or later, right, Love?”

She shouted the last sentence towards the sewer.

In the depths of darkness, there came a faint sigh. Ge Tingting watched as Sun Qi’an opened her eyes, and a gentle smile appeared on her face. In a daze, Ge Tingting almost thought she saw her mother.

In the blink of an eye, Sun Qi’an disappeared from her embrace.

Ge Tingting hurriedly instructed Yellow Millet to float upwards. That amiable female doctor was now suspended in front of Xiang Jiang and Xiang Hai. She stood gracefully, looking towards “Huang Jin” and Fu Xingchuan on the opposite side with eyes filled with regret.

Behind her, among the clouds, more arms desperately tore open the vortexes and squeezed into the mortal realm. Ge Tingting’s head began to spin, and Yellow Millet swiftly extended a small tentacle, forcefully covering her eyes.

“My body will be born soon, while you’re here as a pitiful substitute.”

Love manipulated Sun Qi’an and spoke with a voice as gentle as water.

“Sorrow, you have ultimately chosen the wrong path. Go back. This is your last chance… Ah!”

Mid-sentence, Love suddenly furrowed her brows, and a hint of pain appeared on her face.

“Do you think I’m foolish? Do you think I won’t look at any situation and let humans come and go as they please?”

Huang Jin’s version of Qi Xin sneered.

“Don’t speak so confidently, fool.”

……

The Other Side.

As planned, the human team led by Shian quickly attracted the attention of the Elementals. Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo circled around to the rear.

Ensuring there were no obstacles around, Yin Ren instantly reverted to his original form. He held Zhong Chengshuo’s hand in his palm with one hand while the remaining three hands cast spells simultaneously, opening a narrow passage on the giant hemisphere.

The moment it was destroyed, the white passage quickly restored itself. Yin Ren wouldn’t miss this opportunity; he darted through the narrow path like an arrow, leaving behind a trail of red silk.

In this manner, while destroying and advancing, Yin Ren swiftly slipped into the interior of the giant hemisphere.

Just as he had expected, this place was also pure white. However, the space here formed a massive spherical shape. The upper half was the pristine white they had arrived in, while the lower half was a shallow, transparent state, allowing a faint view of the chaotic scenery outside.

The lower half of this “spherical egg” seemed to have forcefully embedded itself in the interstitial space of chaos. The bottommost part of the sphere emitted a swirling grayish-white color, spinning into a dazzling vortex.

Something was squeezing its way into the vortex.

That thing was connected to numerous thread-like “umbilical cords” that criss crossed towards the outer wall of the sphere. Amidst the entanglement of these cords, Yin Ren could vaguely make out the shape of that thing.

Yin Ren couldn’t quite describe what that thing “was”.

Its body roughly resembled the torso of an infant, with no discernible gender. The neck of the torso and the positions of its limbs lacked a normal structure, with only white wings woven from slender arms.

At first glance, it appeared as if someone had severed the head and limbs of a human baby, neatly inserting snow-white pigeon feathers into the cut openings. The “child” assumed a curled-up position, as if sleeping within the confines of a maternal womb, with the white wings tightly guarding something against its chest.

Thump, thump, thump.

That was a beating snow-white heart. Countless blood vessels coiled around, leading towards the infant’s body, while a large vertical eye adorned its surface, tightly shut.

Yin Ren: “…”

For the first time, he felt that his own form was perfectly normal. He had some psychological barriers about consuming something like this.

Zhong Chengshuo, sensing Yin Ren’s hesitation, carefully nudged his palm. At the same time, the peculiar embryo seemed to sense something as well. The vertical eye on its heart suddenly opened wide, and its pitch-black pupils swirled as it gazed at Yin Ren.

Amidst the pure white monstrosity, a single speck of black appeared.

A mass of red silk surged around Yin Ren as he swooped down, his pitch-black wings covering the sky.

“Hello there, Love.”

The author has something to say:

The Paw Patrol has accomplished a great feat. (Huang Jin: ?)

However, Love isn’t so easy to fight against——

Kinky Thoughts:

Huang Jin is so handsome. This is your chapter!

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

Chapter 234: Twins

After recent trials, Huang Jin was well prepared for the mission.

He had even prepared a will for property distribution, waiting to be sent at a scheduled time. Huang Jin knew better than to underestimate any mission, even if it seemed harmless on the surface. There was always a catch behind it.

The search mission was no exception.

Huang Jin’s coat was adorned with Tranquility Talismans, and he had explosive talismans hidden in the cuffs, ready to escape at the slightest sign of trouble. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned, and this time he didn’t have time to escape.

Upon discovering abnormal evil qi, the group traveled through the sewer and arrived beneath the newly built pedestrian street. As expected, Ge Tingting was the first to notice the rolling pieces of human flesh in the sewage.

Wang Zhou immediately reported the situation to Shian, but before he could provide further details, the communication suddenly cut off. Fortunately, everyone present wasn’t inexperienced or foolish. They all obediently waited in their positions for backup.

Around the four of them was a ladder that could be used to climb out of the sewer. The ladder was still sticky with the foul-smelling meat, and the dark sewer cover rested at the end of the ladder, black as an eye socket.

At this moment, Ge Tingting wasn’t needed. Even Huang Jin, the spirit smith, could smell the faint stench of corpses in the air. It was the afternoon, and the pedestrian street was crowded with people. Yellow Millet was a tangible evil, not something that could be thrown out immediately. Huang Jin sighed in his heart, with Yellow Millet hidden in his pocket.

Wang Zhou was the first to become restless.

“Continuing like this is not an option,” Wang Zhou said. “I brought a portable drone that can capture some footage. If things are still manageable outside, we can evacuate early.”

“Be careful of cognitive pollution,” Huang Jin grumbled.

“It’s fine. The footage has been processed and won’t be directly transmitted.” Wang Zhou smiled back at Huang Jin. “Besides, I’m a science post, so I have a strong resistance.”

Carrying the heavy equipment case, Wang Zhou moved the sewer cover aside and then climbed onto the ladder. He released a small, unmanned drone into the opening. A crescent-shaped light appeared in the darkness, like a mocking smile.

After just a dozen seconds, Wang Zhou put down the controller and suddenly started climbing outward.

“What are you doing?!” Bao Linlin stood up abruptly. “Wang Zhou, come down!”

Wang Zhou ignored her.

Struggling, he moved the sewer cover and climbed towards the street, without even looking down once. Huang Jin squinted his eyes; it was too dark here, and he couldn’t see what was going on in Wang Zhou’s thoughts.

“I’ll go and bring him back. You two wait here,” Bao Linlin said, stomping her foot. She quickly climbed up the ladder, following Wang Zhou. Her movements were clean and precise, while Wang Zhou clumsily climbed outward. Despite Bao Linlin putting her weight on it, she still couldn’t pull him back, as he was a fully grown man burdened with heavy equipment.

Huang Jin sighed and was about to go up and help when he saw Bao Linlin being pulled towards the sewer cover by Wang Zhou. In the next second, she leaped out of the cover and disappeared.

Huang Jin: “?!”

The two figures quickly vanished near the sewer cover.

This time, there was light outside the sewer cover, and Huang Jin could barely make out something—a fast-spinning stream of thoughts around Bao Linlin, with only one sentence.

[Must see.]

For a moment, only the two members of Unit 9 were left staring at each other in the sewer.

“Cognitive pollution,” Huang Jin said firmly. “There’s something extremely dangerous up there. Let’s wait here.”

Ge Tingting pondered for a while, then took out all the Tranquility Talismans on her and stuck them onto Huang Jin. “We can’t just wait. If the situation is really bad, we need to notify the Emergency Management Department.”

“We don’t need to protect the Emergency Management Department, do we?!” Huang Jin rolled his eyes in exasperation.

Ge Tingting: “But compared to Yin Ge and Zhong Ge, the Emergency Management Department is closer to our level of power, so they need protection too.”

Huang Jin: “…” Thanks to those two individuals, this girl’s understanding of metaphysical combat power had completely collapsed. He really couldn’t save her.

“Huang Jin, I’m not joking. If Xiang Jiang is planning a citywide attack, Ding Lizi may not be safe.”

“…Fine, I get it!”

Huang Jin pinched Yellow Millet, and the latter reluctantly expanded a little, becoming the size of an exercise ball. Huang Jin covered his body with Tranquility Talismans and cautiously floated towards the sewer entrance. His eyes couldn’t see the true appearance of humans and evil beings, naturally resisting visual cognitive pollution.

At the sewer entrance, Huang Jin poked out half of his head, looking around with a dirty face.

Everything on the street seemed normal. People were walking in groups of two or three, occasionally stopping to take photos or videos. Several influencers were live streaming with excitement. Bao Linlin and Wang Zhou, who had climbed out, had also found a corner and were adjusting something.

People’s thoughts were constantly washing over the street, but Huang Jin could only see one sentence as he carefully observed.

[Must see.]

[Must see.]

[Must see.]

……

“Puff! Puff, puff!”

Yellow Millet seemed to have sniffed something and wobbled its body, turning Huang Jin in a certain direction.

Huang Jin then noticed a stone tower not too far away.

This stone tower was a replica of a certain historical site in Haigu and was exquisitely crafted. Beautiful trees used for prayers and wishes were planted nearby, making it the most picturesque spot on the street.

Squelch.

The sound of flesh being torn apart echoed, and fresh blood flowed down the pale white surface of the tower. Countless vengeful spirits climbed and tore at something on the tower with all their might.

Squelch, squelch.

The wet entrails emitted hot steam as they hung from the beautiful eaves of the tower. The process was horrifyingly slow, almost like torture, and Huang Jin almost vomited.

Squelch, squelch, squelch.

Arms, legs, torso… and a head. A human figure mixed with cloth fragments was hanging in the most conspicuous position, drenched in blood. The person seemed like prey used for sacrifice in a tribe, torn apart into several pieces by the vengeful spirits, forming a gruesome totem on the stone tower.

…That person was dying, with only a faint layer of thoughts remaining. On his handsome and gloomy face, there was a slightly inappropriate smile of relief.

[Look at me.]

The thoughts slowly revolved and became sluggish.

[Look at me.] It repeated.

“Xiang… Xiang Jiang…” Seeing the mutilated head, Huang Jin couldn’t even articulate properly.

Has Xiang Jiang gone insane?

Does he just want to die in a more tragic manner, like an ordinary person who would make it to the news and be seen by everyone?

…Wait, be seen by everyone…

Huang Jin’s pupils suddenly contracted.

The various popular influencers around him were still happily explaining things. The young men and women who came to take pictures and go shopping were joyfully filming vlogs. The middle-aged and elderly people posed for selfies and quickly sent them to their family groups. However, all the phones, cameras, and camcorders were pointed in one direction.

Look at me.

That almost lifeless person emitted an extremely powerful corruption of evil qi.

Look at me.

In the dense atmosphere of evil qi, the scene of a tragic and painful death, the almost insane obsession… and most importantly, widespread cognition. The bloody and macabre scene couldn’t be suppressed or deleted fast enough. This blurry and gory footage was spreading through the internet to various parts of the world.

Huang Jin knew he should retreat.

He also knew that at the moment Xiang Jiang breathed his last breath, something incredibly sinister would definitely be born. He must escape, but…

“Ge Tingting, don’t come out! Yellow Millet, shake the atmosphere of evil qi!”

Huang Jin shouted loudly.

“Aren’t you a fucking A-A level evil? Right now, destroy all electronic devices!”

“Puff—!” Yellow Millet, sensing Huang Jin’s emotions, instantly exploded with a large amount of evil qi. Suddenly, a bone-chilling storm swept through the pedestrian street, and all the surrounding electronic devices went out as if hit by an electromagnetic pulse at the same time.

People continued their actions as if nothing had happened, still gazing at the corpse and enthusiastically capturing their poses.

Even though their screens were completely dark.

Huang Jin nervously surveyed the surroundings. No, there was still a faint light in the corner. Wang Zhou was facing the unmanned aerial vehicle, smiling and saying something. Devices from Shian were always resistant to the atmosphere of evil qi.

“Fuck!” Huang Jin threw an explosive talisman backwards, directly destroying the unmanned aerial vehicle. Throughout the entire process, he kept his peripheral vision on that deadly corpse.

There was nothing left in the thoughts of that corpse, and amidst the lively and joyous atmosphere, Xiang Jiang breathed his last breath.

Meanwhile, the totem-like pieces of the corpse slowly melted down the stone tower. The surrounding vengeful spirits didn’t have time to disperse and were devoured by the flesh and blood sponge. The fluctuations of the evil qi around grew more intense, and the dark clouds above the stone tower gradually spun, forming a vortex-like shape.

Huang Jin’s back hair stood on end. “Yellow Millet!”

“Puff, puff, puff!” Yellow Millet shook its eyeballs frantically, even trembling slightly in the face of the increasingly deformed corpse.

…Yellow Millet was, after all, a completely natural evil. It was impossible for it to risk its life for humans. It seemed that thing would transform into an A-A level evil. Huang Jin swallowed his saliva nervously.

In less than half a minute, the flesh and blood finally merged together. Countless viscous threads sprayed from its surface, gradually forming a huge cocoon. It was covered with black and red patterns resembling human faces, beautiful yet terrifying.

Xiang Hai spread his horrifying wings and lovingly extended his arms, embracing the cocoon that was about the height of a person. The cocoon seemed to possess consciousness, as its surface transformed into a swamp-like texture, gradually engulfing Xiang Hai.

Huang Jin clenched his teeth and pulled out all the explosive talismans, throwing them all near the cocoon. Numerous explosions occurred, shattering the exquisite stone tower into pieces. However, the cocoon inexplicably clung to the remaining stone wall, floating in the air. The surrounding evil qi grew denser, the dark clouds in the sky spun faster, and dozens of semi-transparent “umbilical cords” hung down from the vortex, swaying above the cocoon.

Faced with such a phenomenon, Huang Jin dared not even breathe.

Escape. He had tried his best. For heaven’s sake, he was just a spirit smith. How would he know how to terminate an evil like this?

Damn it, why couldn’t his body move?!

Just like a fledgling bird breaking through the eggshell, there was a slight cracking sound.

A pale and slender hand broke through the cocoon and reached out. Then came the shoulder, head, and body.

Intact bodies of Xiang Jiang and Xiang Hai floated side by side in mid-air.

Both of them had human-like appearances, handsome enough to be called so, but their skin tone was much paler than a living person’s. They wore identical old-fashioned robes, one in red and the other in white. The facial wings on Xiang Hai’s back were gone, but their clothes now had numerous hidden facial patterns, each face twisted with pain and despair.

The chilly wind became chaotic, and dried leaves were swirling and flying everywhere. One leaf landed on Xiang Hai’s hair, and Xiang Jiang slightly tilted his body to catch it in his hand.

With a gentle squeeze, the beautiful yellow leaf turned into a black-gray frost and scattered from Xiang Jiang’s hand.

Huang Jin wished he could faint.

The good news was that he didn’t go crazy on the spot upon seeing these two, which meant they were not yet at the level of an Evil Spirit. The bad news was that they were undoubtedly, unprecedentedly powerful and formidable ghosts.

They even possessed true physical forms.

Yellow Millet was more panicked than him. It almost tore itself apart, desperately twisting in the opposite direction of the twin spirits. If not for the consideration of its master’s colleagues, Huang Jin suspected that Yellow Millet would have flicked him away like a flea.

It’s over.

When Huang Jin noticed the malevolent gaze of Xiang Jiang shifting towards him, he wanted to give himself a few slaps—Didn’t I tell you to escape immediately? Didn’t I tell you not to go up and make trouble? Now he would become someone’s punching bag. Whose fault was it?

“Yellow Millet, escape through the sewer!” he shouted in panic.

However, before he could utter the last word, flames suddenly lit up around him.

Bright orange flames tightly encircled the entire pedestrian street. The dense, dark clouds were almost illuminated by the fire, giving off a hint of warmth.

At some point, a figure flashed beside Huang Jin.

Huang Jin stiffly turned his head—

The person was surrounded by a fire dragon, and his tied-up black hair swayed in the cold wind. The eye-catching red attire and exaggerated fringe earring—The head of the Emergency Management Department, Minister Fu Xingchuan.

A fire dragon coiled around Huang Jin and Yellow Millet, assuming a protective stance.

“You manipulated the situation? Well done,” Fu Xingchuan said concisely. “Step back and be on standby.”

Before Huang Jin could respond, Yellow Millet deflated with a “puff”. It transformed into a soft cushion, carrying Huang Jin as they drifted downward. Along the way, Huang Jin took a glance. The Emergency Management Department personnel were busy on the street, evacuating tourists.

And just like that, Yellow Millet floated back into the sewer, narrowly avoiding crashing into Ge Tingting.

Huang Jin took several breaths before regaining his composure. “Ge Tingting, come up too. We might need to evacuate at any time.”

“Is the situation bad?”

“Hard to say,” Huang Jin said. “But with Fu Xingchuan there, we definitely have a chance to escape. What’s that?”

The well opening above their heads suddenly darkened.

Accompanied by a startled cry of “Ah”, a tourist fell down. Huang Jin immediately moved aside, allowing the person to fall onto the soft Yellow Millet.

Yellow Millet made a loud “puff” upon being hit.

“Oops…” The person scrambled to get up, adjusting their disheveled long hair. “Huang Jin, Little Miss Ge?”

This person’s thought pattern seemed familiar. Huang Jin’s mind slowly turned, and Ge Tingting reacted first. “Dr. Sun, what are you doing here?”

Huang Jin finally realized.

Right, it was Zhong Chengshuo’s friend who had been involved in Mr. Le’s campus case before. They had even had a meal together.

He remembered her name was Sun Qi’an.

……

The Other Side.

“I disagree,” Meng Huai said. “You don’t need to waste time contacting Shian.”

“Shen Mo’s presence here does indicate a major disturbance in the mortal world. But given the current situation, as long as Xiao Fu and Xiao Li haven’t been kicked in the head by a donkey, they know that a great calamity is approaching. Will you stay over there if you inform Shian of the situation?”

Zhong Chengshuo: “…” But the two Zhong elders were still in the mortal world, and he felt uneasy about his helplessness.

However, he also understood that to deal with “Love”, he and Yin Ren must not be separated.

“I know you’re worried about your parents. Your parents are also Chengfeng’s parents, and I care too.” Meng Huai shook her head. “But I trust Shian… and I ask you to trust them too. Your Charon abilities aren’t proficient, so it’s better not to complicate matters.”

Zhong Chengshuo: “I understand.”

“In that case, we only have one path left.” Yin Ren took over the conversation, and this time he didn’t smile.

“Yes,” Meng Huai curled her lips.

Yin Ren took a deep breath. “According to the plan. Minister Jiao will be responsible for the rear command. Meng Jie, Chengfeng Jie, and Fu Tianyi will form a team. You will deal with Shen Mo and lead the ‘Lonelies’ to rescue the missing people.”

“Zhong Chengshuo will take a detour with me and engage with ‘Love’ directly. Qi Xin is an unstable factor; if necessary, we will let her join the battle.”

After speaking, he paused.

“…Action will take place in three hours as planned. Kill ‘Love’.”

The author has something to say:

When people fight, gods fight too.

That’s why there are two mascots! (Not really)

Kinky Thoughts:

Lonelies MPV! I want a Lonely cat…

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